Save Me From The Dark
by Hair Like Starlight
Summary: "You want me to do WHAT?" "You heard me, Mr Malfoy. We want you to prove you're not the evil person everyone thinks you are. Redeem yourself by getting Miss Granger's memory back." - Hermione Granger can no longer deal with the trauma from the war and has abandoned the wizarding world. When the ministry sends Draco Malfoy to save her, the plan starts fo backfire. DM/HG, GW/HP.
1. Sleeping Somewhere Cold

**A/N:** I never have anything to say in these things, what do you NORMAL people talk about? Um, maybe i'll just ramble about things that have no importance to any of you but i'll do it just to fill up this space here. Yes, evil plans are evil. I was sitting in the car thinking about Lockhart and the 'obliviate' spell and then BAM this idea hits me. There is a lot of 'what the actual fuck' going on in this story and I really hope that you all enjoy it because... I dunno, it takes effort to plan out stories and write them. I'm writing two stories at once now (it's terrible, I know because I can barely keep up with one) but i'm going to try and update this every one-two weeks. This story was inspired by the song 'Wake Me Up' by Evanescence and the story/first chapter is named after lyrics from the song. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the song 'Wake Me Up' by Evanescence. I wouldn't be writing fanfiction about HP if I owned Harry Potter, and if I did Dramione would be canon. That is all.

* * *

Hermione Granger. Strong, fearless, muggleborn, the brain of the Golden Trio, Gryffindor's lioness, was not all that the people made her out to be. Nobody noticed the typical symptoms that showed the trauma she still suffered from daily prior to the war, nor the tiredness in her eyes or the strain in her voice. Their unseeing eyes never took in the way her body dragged slightly whenever she moved. It was something she could never relate to, because she noticed these signs among many of her friends after the war. She noticed most things. She had seen the withdrawal in their eyes, the way they scrunched up their face before talking because they didn't want to have to find the energy.

It hurt the former Gryffindor deeply that her best friends didn't notice. She wasn't meaning Ron there, because hell did that boy notice anything at all? Nor Harry, he was perceptive but not much more than Ron. Ginny didn't notice, Luna didn't notice, Alicia didn't notice, Neville didn't notice, Hannah didn't notice, _no one noticed._

And it left her wondering - did they see her anymore? Was she just invisible to them, a ghost? Her eyes slid shut as this thought drifted through her mind and she immediately discounted it, as she had so many times before. Surely not, they were her friends and they _cared_ about her. It was just this depression making her feel like they didn't, she told herself. "Speaking of depression," she muttered to herself as her eyes snapped open once more and took in her perfectly prim and proper apartment. It didn't feel homey or warm, it looked as if no one even lived in it due to how clean it was. You wouldn't be able to tell that she did unless you checked her bedroom, which had a picture of her, Harry, Ron and Ginny in their Gryffindor uniforms, laughing heartily at something that she had long since forgotten.

Her flat was small, with a simple kitchenette/dining/living area setup and a hallway that led to her bedroom. On the opposite side of the door to her room was the door to the bathroom, and that was basically it. Hermione lifted herself off of her lilac couch and dragged her tired limbs over to the kitchen where she reached up to the medicine cabinet, full of pills and various other first aid needs. She pulled the bucket down and dropped it carelessly onto the counter. She didn't feel an ounce of relief when it didn't topple over onto the floor. She didn't have the energy to feel anything other than tired and ever so _alone._ She was always alone, in this flat, around her friends, at work, everywhere.

The isolation had driven her to the point where she needed muggle anti-depressants to help neutralise her mostly negative emotions. She popped out one of the pills and chucked it back with a glass of water, shuddering as the pill slid down her throat. She had decided months ago that she would never get used to the feeling of taking pills. It was unpleasant and they never seemed to taste nice, so she couldn't exactly chew them up either. She could remember the first time she'd taken pills and she'd tried that - it wasn't the greatest experience of her life to be honest.

And that was when it hit her.

She couldn't go on living like this, she was Hermione freakin' Granger and she refused to just lay down and let herself become this withdrawn, sad person. Her gaze hardened and she knew just what she had to do. She needed an escape, to get away for a while so she could come back, stronger. Because after all, the saying went 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger' and it was time she started living by that code. Spurred on by her moment where she felt like the old, fiery-tempered Hermione Granger, she stomped straight to her bedroom and began shoving everything she could into a trunk. Her fingers grazed over the photo frame on her bedside table before she laid it down flat so she couldn't see the happier times.

Scribbling a note on a scrap piece of parchment, Hermione Granger made her escape from the suppression and the trauma of the wizarding world. The moment she entered the muggle neighbourhood that she'd grown up in, she felt as if a weight had been lifted off of her chest and though the haunting memories of the war still lingered in her mind, she could breathe again. It was as if the fog in her mind had momentarily been lifted and she understood how to get through the depression that had plagued her since the end of the war - and the solution would not be found among muggle drugs. She had to find it within herself to move on, though a certain potion could come in handy, for she already felt the greyness tugging at her mind, trying to drag her back into the dark.

_That's it though, after the brewing of the potion i'm DONE with magic until I can move on, _she firmly told herself, though found that no part of her resisted her own thoughts.

There was a strange contentment in the decision to give up her witch powers and she was surprised by her own discovery but not overly bothered by it. Perhaps because she was raised as a muggle it would be easier to become one than she'd originally thought. Determinedly, she strode towards her parent's house, which she had inherited due to their untimely death. Ironically, they had been taken from her due to a car accident. She had devoted everything to keep them safe from the wizarding world, only to have the muggle one rip them away from her.

She still felt like bursting into hysterical laughter whenever she thought about it.

* * *

"Hermione?" Harry's voice echoed throughout the empty flat and his brow furrowed as he took in his immediate surroundings. Prim and proper Hermione, whose flat never held a speck of dirt was dusty, as if nothing had been moved in days, nay, weeks. It concerned Harry because he had not heard from his friend in nearly a month and after a while of pestering Ginny about whether she'd heard from the brunette, he finally decided to go investigate. The flames of Hermione's floo network roared behind him and he knew that it was his red-headed fiancé behind him.

"Dust," Ginny muttered as she brushed past Harry and stroked her index finger over the bookshelf, lifting her finger to see a clear trail where she'd slid it. She wiped her hands on her jacket and turned to frown at Harry. "Hermione's flat is _never_ dusty." She commented and Harry lifted his green eyes to meet her brown ones, concern swimming in the pair of eyes.

"Did you notice-" He started.

"-that she's been very quiet the last few times we saw her? Yes," said Ginny, a frown now marring her own features and matching the one on her beloved's face.

"Maybe she's upset because of the break-up with Ron?" Harry mused, though he knew immediately that wasn't the answer.

Not two days after the war had ended, Hermione and Ron finally decided to talk about the kiss they'd shared and chose to embark on a relationship. Everything had been going well until Hermione found out that her parents were dead and she'd become... angry. Everything set her off and it was getting to the point that it put a major strain on her and Ron's relationship. However, Ron managed to get her to calm down and though she wasn't the same as before the war she stopped getting angry all of the time and things had been going well for the mix'n'match pair. Despite outward appearances though, Hermione had confessed to Ginny that she was unhappy with Ron.

All the things that she used to find adorable about him had begun to just annoy her. The way he talked with his mouth full, spraying food all over everyone in the immediate area, how messy he was, how he expected her to just know the answer to everything, his lack of motivation to get off of his arse and help her clean up the apartment, the look he had on his face when he couldn't for the life of him understand what she was trying to say, they all pissed her off to the point that the relationship began to burst at the seams. Two months ago, after eight months of dating Hermione had finally had enough and she broke up with Ron almost immediately.

The moment they broke up, everything got better and they were back to being friends once more. The Golden Trio had become the three best friends again and Harry had thought everything was fine. But Hermione was never really fine, though he didn't notice too much. Ginny did, but she preferred not to bring it up. For you see, Hermione was a shining light to those around her, the strong, brave, intelligent lioness that they all looked up to and Ginny didn't want to admit to anyone that she thought Hermione was falling apart. They all needed to see someone as being strong, and Hermione had filled that void that everyone desired to get through the war. She felt guilty for it every day and had resolved to talk to Hermione about the sadness that seemed to plague her when it seemed she had disappeared off the face of the earth.

"Yes, and pigs fly, Harry," snorted Ginny, their worry about Hermione forgotten for a moment as they both chuckled lightly.

Both of them immediately stopped and looked around, ears straining for some sort of noise in response to their conversation, but they were met with complete and utter silence. Harry was the one to break it with a sigh as he headed towards her bedroom, hoping beyond hope that she would be fast asleep on the bed and would have some sort of excuse for vanishing for such a period of time. Had it been a month? He pursed his lips as he realised it had been. A whole month without word of Hermione, and Harry had not once checked to see if she was still showing up to work at Flourish and Blott's. If he had done so, he would have discovered that Hermione abruptly quit her job and refused to give any explanation as to why.

Harry paused outside the door and stared at it warily, as if it would bite him. With a roll of her eyes, Ginny stepped forward and nudged him out of the way with her hip as she grabbed the door handle and quietly pushed the door open. Simultaneously, the couple's faces fell at the sight before them. Drawers were open all over the place and emptied of their contents, random objects that had been on top of the dresser, her bedside table and her desk were all gone. The photo of the Gryffindor's at a happier time was lain down on the table. Ginny was the first to notice the note as they searched the room for any sign as to where Hermione had gone.

"Harry!" She gasped as she picked up the note and tears formed in the corner of her eyes, her eyes sweeping over the words.

Immediately, the raven haired man was at her side and he kissed her cheek softly, fingers wiping away the tears that had slid soundlessly down her cheeks. An arm wrapped around her waist as he tugged her down to sit on the un-touched bed beside them. His wife curled into his side and sobbed softly as her arms wrapped around him. Concerned, he took the note from the beside table and with his arm still tightly gripping her waist, his own green eyes read the words. The moment he was done he released the note, watching as the paper fell tot he ground and feeling his chest constrict painfully.

Hermione Granger had left them.

His arms came around Ginny and he buried his face in her ear as tears ran down his own face. How could she do this to them, why wouldn't she ask for help? They all needed the Gryffindor Princess and though he'd definitely noticed she was more withdrawn, he assumed it was just a personality change from the war. Didn't war change people, after all? But he hadn't realised the problem was this deep that she felt the need to run away from it all and flee to the muggle world where she could be alone and away from them all. The worst part was her plan. And it was what sent Ginny into hysterics and caused even Harry Potter to break down in sobs.

She wouldn't remember everything they'd been through. She was taking the cowards way out. The person everyone believed to have not been affected at all in a negative way by the war, was the one who was affected the most.

_To whomever this may concern,_

_I hope this note finds you in good health, dearest friend. I would like to address this to the three people that mean the most to me, but the rest of you are welcome to read this because there is a bit at the bottom for all of you._

_Harry, you were always there for me and I love you for it. You're my big brother and i'm so happy that you found happiness in Ginny and that you got help for your PTSD. It was always nice to have someone around who understood random muggle facts and I am so proud of you for defeating Voldemort. I will always be honoured that I could stand by your side during that time and I hope that despite how long I may be gone, you'll welcome me back with open arms when I return._

_Ginny, you beautiful girl. You're my best girl friend and without you I would probably be a major tomboy! You always had this way of making me smile when I wanted to throw something at Harry and Ron for being so ignorant. You just immediately understood what I was trying to explain without looking at me like I was from another planet and it was great to have a girl pal. I wish you all the best with Harry and I want you to know that I love you dearly, you're a sister to me after all._

_Ron. I know things didn't work out between us but I think it was for the better. After we broke up I felt like I had my friend back and it was nice to just have you around once more. I hope you don't hold any resentment towards me because of the break-up, I still care about you. Like Harry, you're a brother to me and I wish i'd realised that sooner. I'll always hold you close to my heart, and please, for the love of Merlin learn some simple table manners and etiquette! _

_And to everyone else I didn't have time to mention, I love you all. Thank you for caring about me. But, though I tried to hide it I can't do this anymore - I can't pretend to be strong when really i'm dying every day inside. None of you ever saw, but my medicine cabinet is full to the brim with drugs and pills to help keep me sane. I suffer from more than any of you can begin to understand and please know that I kept it from you to try and make you feel like you had someone strong to believe in. I won't say it didn't hurt that nobody noticed I was suffering, but I don't blame any of you._

_I'm leaving now and I don't know when i'll return. I know of a potion that can lock away my memories of the war until my mind is ready to accept them back. I'm returning to the muggle world and I would appreciate it if you didn't follow me, because I _need _to be alone. I won't remember anything bad about my Hogwarts years, so the DA, fighting Voldemort, destroying Voldemort will all be gone as well as everything after the war. I apologise but I will still remember all of you, just not on the deep level that we do know each other. One day, i'll be back and ready to deal with the bad memories but for now? I need some happiness and peace._

_Love, _

_Hermione._

* * *

**A/N: **I know Hermione seems a little OOC but war will change people and she is suffering from PTSD and depression, to name the major things. There are a couple of others but they're not really important to know so i'll leave it at that. Don't worry, there shall be Draco in the next chapter! R&R! Cookies for those who review. :)


	2. Before I Come Undone

**A/N:** Ooft, look at all the alerts! And even a review! :D I'm very happy, but it would be nicer if I could get a couple more reviews. I find them really inspiring, because someone actually took the time to write a response to my story. ^_^ Even if you're just giving me constructive criticism I could probably use it because I know my writing is far from perfect, very, very far - but I would greatly like to improve it. I could probably use a **beta** for this story too, if anyone's interested. Just drop me a PM!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the song 'Wake Me Up' by Evanescence. I wouldn't be writing fanfiction about HP if I owned Harry Potter, and if I did Dramione would be canon. That is all.

* * *

_**Three Years Later...**_

Silvery-blonde white hair was messily arranged on top of an albino-pale man's head, his steely grey eyes regarding the _Daily Prophet_ with barely-hidden irritation. He only got the Prophet because of the business statistics section, and to check that there was nothing about him in it. Contrary to popular belief, he honestly couldn't care less about being in the spotlight - unless it negatively affected him. If he was occasionally featured in a main article, that was fine with him, but he wouldn't go out of his way to have the press fawning over his every move. It was important that there was only positive news, or else his shaky standing in society would surely collapse.

He really didn't need that right now. Draco Malfoy was trying to rebuild his image as a person, to just be normal and not have glares thrown his way at least twice a day. It really did get tiresome being hated by people who didn't know the half of the shit he went through. They didn't know what it was like to have fucking Lord Voldemort _breathing_ down their necks, living in their own house! How could you turn to the light side when it was pointless considering the moment you tried you'd just be murdered? People called him selfish, their noses pointed upwards as they regarded him with coldness, their backs so straight it was as if they had a stick shoved up their ass.

Snooty nosed, judgemental pricks, he called them in his mind whilst outwardly he just rolled his eyes and kept walking. Selfish? It was more like self-preservation, and he was sure if he threw them in the same situation they would've done the same despite their protests that they'd rather die than join the dark side. Easy for them to say when they didn't have those gleaming, blood red eyes promising a painful demise for him and everyone he cared about. He shuddered just at the thought of them, the red eyes that constantly haunted his nightmares, made him wary to travel in the dark for fear of seeing them illuminating it.

They were all just as bad as they made him out to be, saying he was close-minded and judgemental because apparently, he gave a shit about blood status. When really, they were the close-minded, judging ones. Nobody ever heard him out except in that court room when, surprise surprise, Potter the fucking Saint had to come save the day and say he believed Draco was innocent and should be let off. This wasn't to say he wasn't grateful towards Potter, but it was just like him to have to save everyone's ass, wasn't it?

He rolled his eyes at himself, shaking his head as he dropped the Prophet in his hands in disgust. Honestly, couldn't they just leave him the fuck alone? How was it their business if he decided to hang out with Astoria Greengrass? That didn't mean their were wedding bells ringing, fuck he didn't even _like _Astoria that way. It was gruesome to just think about it like that. The only reason he'd marry Astoria is if his parents organised an arranged marriage, and even then he would still probably go into hiding to avoid it. Astoria was nice, don't get him wrong, with a witty, sarcastic humour that rivalled his own, but she wasn't at all what he wanted in a woman.

She was so little of a challenge.

His life was so dull and boring, the only challenge in it when the press were bothering him and that wasn't challenging - that was just downright annoying. He wanted something new and exciting other than this daily routine of people hating on him or feeling pity for him. He wanted something that would make going to work less tedious.

He did _not _want Astoria Greengrass. She was the kind of girl that even though she could hold her own in an argument would give up after a few minutes and change the topic to something that they wouldn't argue over to avoid tension. She was the kind of girl who went shopping all day and wore slutty dresses in colours that they knew he liked to capture his attention - normally in silver or green, because if he was in Slytherin then obviously his favourite colours had to be silver and green. They weren't, naturally, but he didn't fancy telling those girls that. Astoria was pleasant, but she wasn't the kind of girl he'd want to be his wife. He shuddered just at the thought of marriage, it sounded so traditional and boring - and he'd be damned if he was forced into it with someone he couldn't give a flying fuck about.

The rebellious streak in Draco still rang strong, making the thought of marriage so dull, the thought of marrying Astoria so dull, everything was just so dull. He sighed and shook his head, now was not the time to let his rebellious nature take a hold of him. He had to get ready for work. He quickly stood, one of his house elves almost immediately appearing out of nowhere to take his plate and he gave the elf a half-hearted smile. For some peculiar reason, despite the fact he had not seen her and never really cared about her all that much at Hogwarts unless they were fighting, he always thought of Granger whenever he saw an elf - which was a lot - and it was frustrating.

Why should she cross his mind at all? Perhaps it was that stupid spew shit she was always going on about. He snorted as he remembered her bushy locks of hair, that snooty look on her face as she wore a badge that spelt out S.P.E.W on her chest. She was such a proud little creature, and as the years went by he could always remember looking forward to their arguments, constantly picking on her until she gave in and they battle with their witty comments and sarcastic tongues. She'd never backed down from a fight either, which is why - secretly - he'd admired her a little. Despite the fact that she was meant to be below him in society, she'd never seemed to care and he'd realised that she was one of the reasons he'd realised muggleborn's were not worthless because of their 'tainted' blood.

With yet another irritated shake of his head, he rushed off to his room and quickly changed. Why was he thinking about her _again_? Damn house elves, he'd have to get rid of them if he wanted to get that frustrating woman out of his head. He thought about her far too often and it was downright unnatural.

After he was ready, he walked straight to the floo and grabbed a handful of the green powder, dropping it and being whisked off to the Ministry of Magic. He had only been allowed a job there because they could not find a reason other than that he was an ex-Death Eater not to hire him, and the head of his department had - luckily - scoffed at the idea of turning him away for such a petty reason. He was probably the only person that Draco liked in his department, because he was more understanding than everyone else.

As expected, whilst Draco made his way over to the lifts that would carry him to his department, he was shot death glares from every second person. Ronald Weasley in particular, Draco noticed, seemed insistent on glaring at him until he could no longer be bothered. He stopped, staring at Draco harshly as his face was contorted into an expression that he had obviously hoped to look intimidating but only made Draco smirk in response and roll his eyes at him before looking away, as if the redhead was not worth his time. Out the corner of his eye, he could see that Weaselbee's face had flushed as red as his hair as he continued on his way. Honestly, how could anyone be attracted to that bafoon? He had thought Granger to be smarter than that.

Weaselbee was dull, just like everything else in Draco's life. He was a mummy's boy, everybody could tell that, and liked to stuff his face with food as if he had no manners. Surely he'd only try to turn Granger into a housewife, and she'd always seemed so much more than that, so very much more. She was a fiery spirited woman with a heart big enough to swallow the whole world up and she had this passion for everything she cared about that Draco found admirable, just like the way she seemed to complete disregard the fact that some in society thought she was worthless because of her blood status.

_Damn it, there she goes again,_ Draco thought irritably as he shook his head for the third time that morning. He ran a hand over his hair, which was no longer slicked back but was neatly arranged on his head. Only when he awoke did he allow it to go crazily messy like some thought was in fashion. He disagreed, messy hair was just distasteful, just like Granger's bushy mop of - no, he was not going to think about Granger and he crazily curly hair.

He jabbed in floor 5 on the lift, which would take him to the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes and swiftly pressed himself into a corner of the lift as others all filed in and shot him dirty looks, whilst some smiled at him warmly. And then, their were the ones that possibly annoyed him as much as those who glared, the ones who gave him that pitying look and touched his arm for a moment in sympathy before moving on. He rolled his eyes after they left but kept his mouth shut, his eyes blank and his body tense whilst they were facing him. Best not to make more enemies than he already had, though it was difficult to keep from snapping at them to leave him alone.

Once at his department floor, he was quick to make his way to his office where he shut the door behind him and groaned. How could he deal with this for any longer? It had been years since the end of the war and still people judged him and were sympathetic towards him. Why couldn't they just smile and move on their way, what right did they have to think they could sympathise with him or judge him? What right?! He cupped the back of his neck with his hamd and shut his eyes, moving his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger, breathing heavily to clam himself down.

Effectively calm, he sat down at his desk and stared at the files that were already piled high before him, letting out yet another groan and settling himself into his chair to get to work reading them and choosing what was high risk and low risk. Boring.

* * *

Ginny landed softly on the ground, sliding off the side of her broom and smiling at the captain of the Holyhead Harpies as the woman beamed back at her and let out a whoop. "Ginny Weasley you are fantastic! We will definitely want you on the team, but don't tell anyone else I said that," she grinned and nudged Ginny's ribs with her elbow, eliciting a laugh from the redheaded girl.

"You're just saying that, don't mess with me, Kay," said Ginny with a slight shake of her head.

"No, seriously!" The bubbly blonde protested, planting herself in front of her friend and placing her hands on Ginny's shoulders. "Everybody whose tried out for chaser is bullshit, no joke. You'd think we'd get some good people wanting to join my fantabulous team but nope," she said, popping the 'p'. "All I get are a bunch of giggling schoolgirls and midlife crisis women thinking they have what it takes. I swear Gin, this world is full of trolls!" She whined.

Mikayla Summers was every man's dream woman - except perhaps, a Pureblood with a stick up their arse. She was a muggleborn woman with an average height frame that was curved in all the right paces and toned from playing Quidditch. Her sun-kissed skin was rare for those who lived in Britain - though she was perviously a California girl - and her golden locks of hair flowed in delicate waves around her heart-shaped face. To top it all off, she had cerulean blue eyes that twinkled with mischief and were framed by thick eyelashes. But nobody was perfect, even if Mikayla came across that way sometimes. She was, to put it simply, over-bearing at times. She was far too excitable and grated on her boyfriend's nerves, that and she was always organising everything because even if she seemed the type to be a little messy her house was freakishly neat - even more so than Hermione's - and everything was categorised.

And she was the biggest commitment-phobe when it came to love you had ever met. She'd had her heart ripped out, torn into little pieces and thrown away and she wasn't ever going to let that happen again. She guarded her heart carefully around men and was reluctant to enter a relationship, always pushing them away once she did. It was downright frustrating for them after a while and they all left her, which was why she saw more reason to guard her heart because she considered herself unloveable.

Ginny and Mikayla had met a few months ago at a bar and had hit it off immediately, bonding at first over their love of shopping and sealing the deal with an animated discussion of Quidditch. At the time, Mikayla was just the keeper of the Holyhead Harpies but a few weeks later she had been promoted after being co-captain for nearly four years. "You're biased to think i'm better because i'm your best friend," retorted Ginny with a snort of laughter as she shrugged Mikayla's hands off of her shoulders and walked past her. She shouldered her broom as she continued to listen to Mikayla's ego-boosting speech about how amazing Ginny was, whilst the redhead in turn could only laugh.

"Okay, okay, I give up, okay? I'm sexy and I know it - that's how the song goes, right? Yeah. And i'm the most amazing chaser you've ever met in your life, yada yada yada!" Ginny chuckled at Mikayla's excited expression as she bounced around happily with Ginny's admittance.

"Yes! And we'll be on the team together and you can be a famous Quidditch player and - eeeeeeeee!" She squealed, running around Ginny in a circle as the girl stood still and rolled her eyes, laughter rolling off of her in waves.

"Merlin's saggy pants, Kay, calm _down_!" Ginny cried in exasperation after it appeared Mikayla would not give up her circling after a while and the blonde immediately halted, her ponytail hitting the back of her head.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!" Mikayla giggled and bounced off to go have a shower. After the two girls were changed into muggle clothes - the Wizarding world was making an attempt to become less biased and therefore more and more Halfblood's were wearing muggle clothing and even Pureblood families like the Weasley's had joined in - they both linked arms and apparated to Diagon Alley where they decided to go shopping and gossiping.

Once they'd picked out some new clothes - they were never went window shopping, too boring - they sat themselves down in the Leaky Cauldron and ordered a butterbeer each. Ginny sipped on hers as she listened to Mikayla gush about this new dress her mother had bought for her and how surprised she was that her mother actually knew the sort of dress she would like. "It sounds gorgeous, aqua really is your colour," said Ginny, completely in agreement with Mikayla's mother. Mikayla nodded eagerly, glad that Ginny agreed.

"Yes! Mum says it goes with my hair, and I agree," said Mikayla.

"I think it compliments your eye colour," Ginny mused and Mikayla gasped, before squealing at the thought.

"It does, doesn't it? Do you think I should wear it tonight?" She asked excitedly, practically bouncing in her chair.

'Tonight' was Ron's birthday, and therefore the Weasley's were having a massive party in his honour as they did everywhere. All of their friends were invited, and it was held at the Burrow. Arthur and Molly had no problem with seeing the kids get smashed, so long as they were allowed to supervise. Despite everyone being old enough to drink, Molly was still a worry wart and often sipped on champagne whilst watching them all to make sure no one got hurt. It was kind of sweet, but she often went to bed early. This year, however, they were going to Arthur and Molly's for dinner before moving on to a club as Ron was looking for a girlfriend. After Hermione left, he'd been messed up about it even more so than anyone would expect because they had seemed to be better as friends but he had admitted to still being in love with Hermione. He was just now getting back into the groove of things and was eager to meet someone else.

"Trying to impress my brother, hmm?" Ginny smirked teasingly, winking at Mikayla as she didn't even look fazed. That was the thing about Mikayla, she rarely blushed at all but instead winked back at Ginny.

"Oh yes, definitely trying to impress Ronniekins," Mikayla snorted with laughter. Ron and Mikayla were almost as close as Ginny and Mikayla and often spent time together, just the two of them - but it was purely platonic and they both looked sick whenever the others teased them about secretly being in love. It was disgusting to the both of them considering how close their friendship was and they always denied any accusations they were in love. After a while, everyone actually realised they weren't even close to being in love, but were just good friend's which was slightly disappointing because they'd all been hoping for a relationship between the two.

"I don't mean Ron, Kay," as aforementioned, Mikayla rarely blushed but Ginny always knew how to get the tiniest tinge of pink spreading across her best friend's cheeks. Mikayla gnawed on her lip and shook her head slightly as a far-away look entered her eye.

"Who, then?" She asked, tilting her head innocently at Ginny.

"Percy?" Ginny suggested playfully and Mikayla nearly gagged. Unlike the friendship Mikayla had with most of the Weasley's, Percy and herself were sworn enemies even though with Mikayla's obvessive compulsive disorder need to be neat and categorised they shodld get along. But, Mikayla was still an out-going and fun person, the opposite of Percy, so despite the fact they were similar in their neat ways, Mikayla was too much 'fun' to be friends with Percy. "What is wrong with you? Eww, Gin!" Mikayla shuddered. Ginny laughed heartily and then went back to her teasing game.

"How about Bill?"

"He's married, so even if I was trying to impress him it wouldn't work." Mikayla shook her head.

"George?"

"Nope."

"No! You're in love with _Charlie_?" Ginny gasped in mock-horror, her hands flying to her mouth in pretend shock. Mikayla rolled her eyes but smirked.

"Dragon boy," a dreamy look entered her eyes.

"How do you even know he's coming to the party?" Ginny asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Ron told me when I asked who was coming." Mikayla responded immediately, not even looking remotely ashamed.

"Of course you would ask who was coming, you sneaky snake," Ginny grinned.

"I resent that, you make out like i'm a Slytherin," Mikayla poked her tongue out, though her face grew thoughtful. "Although, Slytherin's are known to be incredibly sexy if Draco Malfoy is anything to go by, and that Blaise Zabini. Mmm," Mikayla licked her lips and winked at Ginny who nodded her head in agreement. She wasn't prejudiced, she'd listened to enough rants from Harry about how frustrating getting innocent Slytherin's out of being convicted was to know that it was stupid to think Slytherin's were evil just for the fact that they were forced into doing things they didn't want to with the threat of their lives and their families hanging in front of them. Ginny would've done the same to protect her brothers and her parents, if she was in their situation. People were generally too close-minded to notice that, though. Hermione would've agreed with her.

She felt a pang in her heart as she thought of Hermione and her expression fell in the way that the others had all come to recognise by now. There was just this special, heart-broken, abandoned look that she got whenever she was thinking about how Hermione had left them. It had been three years and nobody had heard anything from Hermione since she left them and it was always a sore subject for Harry, Ron, Ginny and Alicia especially as they had been the ones who knew Hermione the most.

"Gin, don't get sad on me I thought we were talking about sexy Slytherin's," Mikayla whined, wrapping an arm around Ginny, who smiled weakly and in an attempt to lighten the mood spoke up on their current topic.

"Beter add Theodore Nott to that list, too," she looked up at Mikayla and they immediately burst into laughter, the tense atmosphere that had enveloped them leaving immediately and being replaced by their normal, good humour.

* * *

**A/N: **Aaaanddd, as promised you got some Draco. He's still a snarky asshole but I couldn't help but piss him off by putting Hermione in his thoughts too often. Fear not, he's not smitten with her yet, he just thinks about her because he's very bored with everything in his life and she was always a puzzle, a challenge which is why he thinks about her because he needs someone challenging in his life. Random Ginny and enterance of my OC as well, which will all be important later in the story even if it just seems boring now. I'll get to the drama soon, but I don't want this story to be super short, alright? Sorry for being a day late on posting this, i'm on holidays and internet is hard to come by. Alert if you're interested, favourite if you think it's alright and if you review well all the cookies in the world for you! :D

P.S. I have no clue where the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes actually is, so I just made up what floor it was on. If you know what floor it IS on, please let me know!


End file.
